Louvre Abu Dhabi to unveil Da Vinci painting in September

ABU DHABI, June 27, 2018

A 500-year-old painting by Leonardo da Vinci will be unveiled to the public at the Louvre Abu Dhabi on September 18, said a report.

Known as Salvator Mundi (Saviour of the World), the painting was sold for a record $450 million at a Christie's auction in November, said a report in WAM.

Acquired by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) in 2017, Salvator Mundi is one of fewer than 20 known surviving paintings by the Italian Renaissance master, one of history’s greatest and most renowned artists, and is his final work to enter into a cultural institution’s collection.

Dating from around 1500, Salvator Mundi is an oil on panel painting, executed onto a walnut panel, depicting a half-length figure of Christ as Saviour of the World, facing the viewer, and dressed in flowing robes of lapis and crimson. The figure holds a crystal orb in his left hand as he raises his right hand in benediction. It is believed to be a contemporary of both La Belle Ferronniere and the Mona Lisa.

After its unveiling at the Louvre Abu Dhabi in September, the Salvator Mundi is scheduled to be loaned to Musee du Louvre in Paris, where it will form part of the Leonardo da Vinci exhibition which will run from October 24, 2019, to February 24, 2020. Salvator Mundi is planned to return to Abu Dhabi after the exhibition, and will be on display again at the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the report said.